Hey! You're reading an outdated Free First Class Next Month series. Check out the latest version published in April of 2015 here.

This is the ninth post in a monthlong series that started here. Each post will take about two minutes to read and may include an action item that takes the reader another two minutes to complete. I am writing this for an audience of people who know nothing about frequent flier miles, and my goal is that by the end, you know enough to fly for free anywhere you want to go.

Not all points are created equally. At MileValue, we take pride in assigning values to frequent flyer miles and analyzing their best uses. Scott worked up the Mile Value Leaderboard, and his math reveals the rational step-by-step method he used to arrive at his cent per mile valuation. He even created a Mile Value Calculator to help you with your own valuations if you want to take a crack.

In the coming months, we will assign a value to hotel points as well. The process is going to be a bit trickier.

Hey! You're reading an outdated Free First Class Next Month series. Check out the latest version published in April of 2015 here.

This is the eighth post in a monthlong series that started here. Each post will take about two minutes to read and may include an action item that takes the reader another two minutes to complete. I am writing this for an audience of people who know nothing about frequent flier miles, and my goal is that by the end, you know enough to fly for free anywhere you want to go.

Update: Reading through comments here and on Twitter and Facebook, this promo is clearly targeted. About a quarter of us got the free night offer, a quarter are getting 2k or 4k points per stay, and half are getting nothing. Try your luck, and leave a comment, tweet, or facebook comment.

Reader Daniel tipped me off about an incredible Starwood Preferred Guest promotion called Bonus Beginnings.

Hey! You're reading an outdated Free First Class Next Month series. Check out the latest version published in April of 2015 here.

This is the seventh post in a monthlong series that started here. Each post will take about two minutes to read and may include an action item that takes the reader another two minutes to complete. I am writing this for an audience of people who know nothing about frequent flier miles, and my goal is that by the end, you know enough to fly for free anywhere you want to go.

According to this thread in the FlyerTalk Mileage Run forum, several airlines are featuring extremely low fares between the US and Istanbul, Turkey.

There appears to be solid availability in February and early March, and I'm seeing fares as low as $413! This is great news, especially for those of us who couldn't get in on the paid first class fare sale to Istanbul and Moscow last week.

The application links for the cards mentioned in this post have been removed because they are expired.
Click here for the top current credit card sign up bonuses.

Full offer details on the 40k bonus mile Frontier card offer:

0% Intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 12 months.

Hey! You're reading an outdated Free First Class Next Month series. Check out the latest version published in April of 2015 here.

This is the sixth post in a monthlong series that started here. Each post will take about two minutes to read and may include an action item that takes the reader another two minutes to complete. I am writing this for an audience of people who know nothing about frequent flier miles, and my goal is that by the end, you know enough to fly for free anywhere you want to go.

Award travel reservations can usually be made up to eleven months in advance. Often, but not always, eleven months out has the best availability.

There are several posts on yesterday's new PointBreaks list. Even if you've read those, read this.